Those few words unexpectedly brought tears to Jessica's eyes. She plopped down onto my arm, which was attached to the IV. My hand instantly swelled into a large bump and the blood started to flow backward into the IV bottle.
But Jerome didn't even glance at me. He was too busy comforting Jessica with infinite patience, "Shh, don't cry, don't cry. Why are you so upset? It's okay, I won't blame you."
As I was processing Jerome's words, he suddenly grabbed the ceramic bowl and downed the meat porridge in one gulp, even licking the spoon clean, her lipstick stain and all.
My nose started to sting. Jerome was infamous for his obsession with cleanliness. He would never eat food that I had touched. At mealtimes, we always used separate plates and dishes.
Once, I was so hungry that I accidentally took food from his plate. I would never forget the look of disgust on his face. The result? He didn't eat a single bite from that plate and he never used it again.
I had never imagined there would come a day when someone could make Jerome act this way. Once, I thought I was Jerome's one and only.